Electrical attachment for clocks.



No. 885,958. PATENTED APR. 28, 1908.

O. P. RAGAN.

ELECTRICAL ATTACHMENT FOR CLOCKS. APPLICATION FILED MAR.6,1906.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

WITNESSES INVENTOR PATENTED APR. 28, 1908.

0. P. RAGAN. ELECTRICAL ATTACHMENT FOR CLOCKS.

APPLIG'ATION FILED MAE.6,1906.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

INVENTOR WITNESSES O. R Rania/Icclock of this kind in which changes in the v, State of Missouri, have invented a new' and 'ment for Clocks, of which the following is a through the clock casing on the line-of the OWEN P. RAGAN,-OF RI DGEWAY, MISSOURI.

ELECTRICAL ATTACHIiENT FOR CLOCKS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented April 28, 1908.

Application filed March 6, 1906. vSerial No. 304,572.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, OWEN P. RAGAN, a, citizen of the United States, residing at, Ridgeway, in the county of Harrison and useful Improvement in an Electrical Attachspecification.

This invention relates to that class of elec trical clocks commonly known as program clocks, in which one or more alarmsare electrically sounded at predetermined times.

While the invention herein described is not limited to the sounding of alarms in any particular place or for any special purpose, the invention is especially adapted for the use in large schools where a regular daily sched ule is carried out in a number of difierent rooms and it is common to sound certain bells to indicate the time for changing classes.

The object of this invention is a clock provided with mechanism for making and breaking at predetermined times, certain electrical circuits the various bells in different rooms being placed in said circuits so thatone or more of the bells will be sounded at certain hours during the day, and the ob ject of the invention is also to provide a program can readily be made by removing or inserting plugs in suitable sockets formed in a portion of the mechanism.

The invention consists also in the novel features of construction hereinafter described and claimed, and shown in the accompanying drawings, in which,

' Figure l is a diagrammatic representation of the mechanism circuits, and bells. Fig.

.4 is a horizontal section taken centrally cannon pinion, a portion of the top of the casing being broken away, in order to show the interior construction. Fig. 3 is a detail enlarged view partly in section illustrating the manner of securing certain indicating hands to an extra cannon pinion and means for electrically connecting the said hands. Fig. 4 is a side elevation illustrating the manner of connecting certain contact brushes to the free end portion of one of said hands. Fig. 5 is a section onthe line 5-5 of Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is a detail view showing in side elevation, a number of plugs. H

In these drawings, A represents a clock casing and A represents the back of the said casing. To this clock casing is hinged a supplemental casing'B one of the hinges bein shown at B and the casing is locked in close position, by. a suitable catch or fastening device B The clock casing A contains the usual clock mechanism, a portion of which is shown at C and which'is of the ordinary construction the only change bein that the center 1pinion isextended throug the back A of t e clock casing and is provided with an extra hour hand arbor C, which extends into the supplemental casing B. It will be obvious that this supplemental casing B is upon the rear face of the ordinary clock casing, the usual clock dial and hands being of course upon the front side.

Upon the rear face of the back A and within the casing B is secured a disk D of a suitable insulating material, such as hard rubber and this disk has upon its face a series of rings 1, 2, 3, i, 5, 6 and 7, which rings are arranged in two sets concentric with respect to each other and which will for convenience be termed the inner and outer sets. In a clock of the size indicated, the inner set con sists of three concentric rings and the outer set of four rings. These rings are provided with a plurality of perforations or sockets D to receive suitable plu s D and D the plugs being of various lengths asclearly shown in Fig. 6, and having s ring bifurcated shanks D by, means of whic 1 they are securely held in the sockets D. Upon the cannon pinion C, and insulated therefrom are two hands C and C and as these bands are upon what may be termed the rear face of the clock, they travel from right to left instead of left to right, as is the case with the dial hands.

From Figs. 1 and 2 it will be noted that the hand C is the longer and its outer end portion travels over the outer set of rings, while the end portion of the shorter hand Q travels over the inner set of rings. The hand (3 is mounted loosely upon the hour hand arbor Q and is held between metal nuts E, which are threaded upon said cannon pinion and which are insulated from the same. end u on the hand C and its free end is in dragglng contact with the adjacent nut IE and an electrical contact is therefore maintained at all times between the hands C and C Upon the outer end portion of each of.

Acontact spring E is secured at one and then to the wire 8.

rings 1, 2, etc. and aline with the=perforations D. Upon any suitable portion of the clock frame or casing are mounted a plurality of binding posts 1 2 3 4, 5*, 6 7*, each of which is connected by a conductor wire G 5 to one of the rin s 1, 2, etc., and in the order named. The fofiowing electrical circuits are then forn1ed:A conductor wire 8, leads from a battery 8 to the binding post 3*, and from the battery 8 through a bell 8 to the 2() binding post 7 It will be obvious 'therefore, that as the bindingpost 3 is electrically connected to ring 3, which is the outer ring of v the inner set and the binding post 7*, is connected to the ring 7, which 1s the outer ring 5 of the outer set, that the outer ring of the two sets are connected to ether through the said circuit, and that all that is necessary to bridge and complete the said circuit is a con nectmg strip from one rin to the other.

This connecting strip is formed by the brushes F hands C and C ,'spring E, and the plugs D D or D. As the brushes do not contact directly with the rings it will be obvious that if no plugs are inserted in any of 5 the sockets D, there will be no complete electrical circuit formed as the circuit will bebroken in tWo places, that is, at the gaps between the lower ends of thebrushes and rings. In the diagram shown in Fi ."1, no plugs are shown in either rings 3 and 7, and there is therefore no complete circuit formed through the wire 8, battery 8 and bell 8 Other circuits are formed as follows :-From the binding post 2 by a wire 12, which circuit includes a battery 13, and also a battery 12 and bells 12 and 12. It will be noted that the two batteries are in series and that the circuit includes two bells. .The circuit 5 formed by the wire, 12, leads back to the binding post 1 and rings 1 and 2, are included in the said circuit. Shuntcircuits 14, 15 16 are also connected to the circuit 12 and include bells 14 and 14 ,15and 15*, 516 and 16*, respectively.

A circuit 9, is formed from the binding post 6* and includes a bell 9 after which it taps the wire 8. A shunt circuit,10, leads from the bindin post 5 around the bells 8 and 9 to a hel A similar circuit 11, leads from the binding post 4 around the bells last mentioned and to a bell 11 and then to the wire 8. It will be noted that the binding posts 4*, 5 6 and 7*, all of 5 which are connected by the wires G to the the arm C and traveling over the disk 1, has

rings of the outer set are in circuit with the battery 8*, while all of the binding posts in electrical connection with the rings 1, 2 and 3, are in circuits which include the two batteries 12 and 13. 7O Suitable numerals desi nating the hours are placed u on the disk as upon an ordinary clock dial with the exception that these numerals read in they reverse direction. Numerals are arranged adjacent the sockets D and read 10, 20, 30, etc. up to 60, the said sets of numerals being arranged to follow each hour numeral and indicate minutes past the hour. It will therefore be obvious that the distance between the sockets D, v30 represent intervals of ten minutes duration and that the brushes F will occupy ten minutes in traveling from one socket to the other. It will also be obvious that when plugs are inserted in any two rings so as to connect 35 those rings in an electrical circuit, that the duration of such circuit will depend upon the length of'the plug, and that by using plugs of various lengths a circuit can be formed when the brushes are between the sockets. For exam le, in Fig. 1, I have shown a plug D w ich is of considerable length arranged in a socket D which the hour and minute numerals l0 and 50 is in a position to be registered with by one of the brushes F at 50 minutes past ten. But it will be noted that owing to the length of the plug, the brushF which travels over the ring l,'wi1l come into contact with said lug, about 10:45. No alarm however, wifi be sounded at this time as two plugs are necessary to complete an electrical circuit. A plug D which is much shorter than the plug D is inserted in a socket of the ring 2 at a point which is indicated by the numerals to e 60 minutes past 10, or 11 oclock. This plug however, is taken so as to extend to' ward the socket alinin with the numerals 50 and overlaps the 8.(l]&C6I1t end portion of the plug D. After the brush F carried by contacted with the plug D for a period of about 10 minutes, the brush F and also carried by said arm and traveling over the rin 2, will engage the lug D, and a circuit w' therefore be comp eted" at 10:55.. This circuit will be as follows :from the battery 12, through the wire 12, to the binding post I by the connecting wire G tothe ring 1, the plug D brush F of the hand C plug D, ring 2,'the connecting wire G, leading to the bindin post 2, wire 12, battery 13, and throug the shunt circuits 14, 15", and 16 and ringin' bells 14, 15, 16, 12 14 15 16? and 12". %t will be, obvioustherefore that these two plugs so arranged will cause 8 bells placed in different rooms of the school building, to ringat a certain predetermined time,

It will also be obvious that if a plug D were inserted in ring 3, opposite the hour numeral fourth socket past the n u of the ring 7, a circuit would 'lG-(l at 54: minutes which ale the rings 3 and '"Z the cirading battery 8* and hell 8 and ll El only would "ring 10:5 2. lt

ernent of plugs a single hell can he g, at predetermined time and one nuntterwatds 8 hells may be snni'zltaneously me I .nng, all oi? the bells being arranged/in ditfen ent portions of the building it will also he ohvious that Where a daily program is carried out, the various plugs can he put into position and the casing Bclosed and the program will he rung oil day afteif day Without any further attention upon the part of an at tendant other than the usual Winding of the clock mechanism. Also that this program can he changed in Whole of in part at any time, by simply removing some of the plugs, changing their position, or iiise'rting one or more additional plugs.

llavinq' thus fully described my invention, "al at I c aim as new and desire to secure by W ttei's Patent, is z- L The combination with a clock, center pinion said clock, extending through the rear pottion of the clock casing, of an extra cannon pinion secured to said'extended poi? tion of the center pinion, hands carried by the extra hour hand arbor, means for: completing electrical circuits through said hands, a nut threaded upon the hour hand art-hot and insulated therefrom and engaged with one of the hands, and aspring secured to the other hand and having its free end dragging upon said nut.

2. A device. of the kind descrihedcornprising a disk having two sets of concentric" carried thereby, each ring having a plurality of sockets formed therein, electrical circuits, including said rings, the said circuits being broken between the rings, inovahle plugs adapted to fit in said sockets, hands adapted to travel over the disk synconducting rings,

.chronouslywith the hands of the clock, plates to the hands, brushes pivoted to the hinged plates, means for holding the plates parallel to the hands, each brush alining with one of the rings, and means for electrically connecting the said rings when two or more brushes are in engagement with two or more of the said plugs. OWEN P. RAGAN.

Ji itnesses: e 7

A. GnTTnnninon, A. Lmcrnacun. 

